Effective Governance - National Governance Association

Tools and Checklists:

Maintained Governing Body Delegation Planner

Effective Governance

October 2019

http://www.nga.org.uk/knowledge-centre

NGA Document © National Governance Association 2019 1

National Governance Association The National Governance Association (NGA) is the membership organisation for governors, trustees and clerks of state schools in England. We are an independent, not-for-profit charity that aims to improve the educational standards and wellbeing of young people by increasing the effectiveness of governing boards and promoting high standards. We are expert leaders in school governance, providing information, advice and guidance, professional development and e-learning. We represent the views of governors, trustees and clerks at a national level and work closely with, and lobby, UK government and educational bodies.



Maintained Governing Body Delegation Planner

Governing bodies are accountable in law for all major decisions about the school and its future. However, this does not mean that they are required to carry out all the work themselves. Many of the tasks can and should be delegated to individuals and committees. It is vital that the decision to delegate a task/responsibility to an individual is made by the full governing body and recorded – without such a formula, the individual/committee has no power to act. The table below sets out the major areas of responsibility for governing bodies and who they can delegate each task to; it also records where the NGA does not think that, even if a task/responsibility can be delegated, this would be good practice. This planner shows to which level the governing body may legally delegate functions. Please note that the decision planner does not apply to academies. Key Level 1: Full governing body Level 2: A committee of the governing body Level 3: An individual governor Level 4: Headteacher. Blue box Function cannot be legally carried out at this level. Action could be undertaken by this level. Although legally possible to delegate to this level, the NGA would not recommend it.

Significant decisions, monitoring and evaluation are best undertaken by the governing body or a committee with delegated authority, not by individuals. As long as it is line with the regulations governing bodies are free to decide for themselves.

There is also space for notes relevant to your governing body – for example, you should specify which committee or individual a particular task will be delegated to.

The governing body is responsible for the strategic direction of the school

Committees can be given delegated authority to make decisions, monitor, evaluate and review particular plans, policies and targets. The head and staff play the major role in formulating plans, policies and targets to bring to committees or to the governing body for discussion prior to adoption by the full governing body.

The head is responsible for internal organisation, management and control of the school and is accountable to the governing body.

Although decisions may be delegated, the governing body as a whole remains responsible for any decision made under delegation.



Area

Function

Level In our school, this

responsibility is

delegated to: 1 2 3 4

Budgets

1. To approve the first formal budget plan each

financial year (whether this can be delegated to

a committee of the governing body depends on

your local authority’s scheme of financial

delegation)

2.

To agree annual action plans and monitor how

school premiums are spent (i.e. PE and sports

premium, Year 7 numeracy and maths catch up

premium, service premium and the pupil

premium)

3. To monitor monthly expenditure

4. To establish a charging and remissions policy

5. To enter into contracts (GB should agree

financial limits)

Staffing

6. Appoint selection panel for headteacher

7. Appoint selection panel for deputy head

8. Appoint selection panel for other members of

the senior leadership team

9. Ratify or reject decisions of appointed selection

panels

10. Appoint other teachers

11. Appoint non-teaching staff

12. To put in place a pay policy

13. To make pay decisions in line with the pay policy

and legal requirements1

14. Dismissal of headteacher



Area

Function


responsibility is


15. Initial dismissal of other staff

16. Suspending head

17. Suspending staff (except head)

18. Ending suspension (head)

19. Ending suspension (except head)

20. Setting the overall staffing structure

21. In voluntary and foundation schools to agree

whether or not the Chief Education

Officer/diocesan authority should have advisory

rights

22. Determining dismissal payments/ early

retirement

23. To produce and maintain a central record of

recruitment and vetting checks

24. Establish and review procedures for addressing

staff discipline, conduct and grievance

Curriculum

25. Ensure National Curriculum (NC) taught to all

pupils

26. To consider any disapplication for pupil(s)

27. To decide which subject options should be

taught having regard to resources, and

implement provision for flexibility in the

curriculum (including activities outside school

day)



Area

Function


responsibility is


28. Establish and review a sex and relationships

education policy (including in primary schools

where the GB must decide whether to teach sex

education) and ensure that parents are

informed of their right to withdraw their

children

29. Provide clear advice, informed by statutory

guidance, on which a strategy for careers advice

and guidance can be based

30. Responsibility for ensuring that provision of

religious education (RE) meets statutory

requirements and/or the requirements of any

trust deed

31. To ensure that all pupils take part in a daily act

of collective worship in line with statutory

requirements

Extra-

curricular

provision

32. To decide whether to offer additional activities

and what form these should take

33. To put into place the additional services

provided

34. To decide whether to stop providing additional

activities

Performance

management

35. To adopt and review teacher appraisal policy

36. To appoint the panel to carry out the appraisal

of the head teacher

37. To carry out appraisal of other teachers (or

delegate to line managers in the school)



Area

Function


responsibility is


Discipline/

exclusions

38. To review all permanent exclusions and fixed

term exclusions where the pupil is either

excluded for more than 15 days in total in a

term or would lose the opportunity to sit a

public examination

(Can be delegated to chair/vice-chair in cases of

urgency)

39. To produce a set of written principles for the

school behaviour policy and present these for

consultation

40. To draft the content of the school behaviour

policy and publicise it to staff, students and

parents.

Admissions

41. To annually determine admission arrangements

(VA and foundation schools)

42. To carry out consultation where changes to

admission arrangements are proposed, or the

governing body has not consulted on their

arrangements in the last seven years (VA and

foundation schools)

43. Admissions: application decisions (Governing

bodies of VA and foundation schools must

establish a dedicated admissions committee to

allocate places, where they choose to delegate

authority to committee level)

44. To establish and publish an admissions appeal

timetable (VA and foundation schools)

45. To appeal against LA directions to admit pupil(s)

(voluntary, foundation and special schools; also

community and VC schools where LA is the

admissions authority)



Area

Function


responsibility is


Premises &

insurance

46. Buildings insurance and personal liability– GB to

seek advice from LA, diocese or trustees where

appropriate

Health &

safety

47. To ensure a health and safety policy and

procedures are in place

48. To ensure that health and safety regulations are

followed

School

organisation

49. To publish proposals to change category of

school

50. To decide whether to convert to academy

status2

51. Propose to alter voluntary foundation or

foundation special school

52. Propose to discontinue voluntary foundation or

foundation special school

53. To set the times of school sessions and the

dates of school terms and holidays (except in

community, special and VC schools where this is

the LA’s role)

54. To ensure that school lunch nutritional

standards3 are met

55. To establish a data protection policy and review

it at least every two years and register with the

Information Commissioner’s Office

56. Maintain a register of pupil attendance

57. To ensure provision of free meals to those

pupils meeting the criteria, including Universal

Infant Free School Meals (if applicable)



Area

Function


responsibility is


Information

for parents

58. To determine whether to publish a home-

school agreement (no longer a statutory

requirement)

59. Overall responsibility for ensuring that statutory

requirements for information published on the

school website, including details of governance

arrangements, are met

60. To establish, publish and review a complaints

procedure

61. To establish and publish a Freedom of

Information scheme and ensure the school

complies with it

GB roles,

procedures

and

development

62. Ensure focus on three core strategic functions:

1. Ensuring clarity of vision, ethos and strategic

direction

2. Holding the headteacher to account for the

educational performance of the school and

its pupils, and the performance management

of staff

3. Overseeing the financial performance of the

school and making sure its money is well

spent

63. To draw up an instrument of government and

any amendments thereafter

64. To appoint (and remove) the chair and vice-

chair of a permanent or a temporary governing

body

65. To appoint and dismiss the clerk to governors

66. To appoint and remove co-opted governors

67. To appoint local authority governors



Area

Function


responsibility is


68. To set up and publish a register of governors’

business and pecuniary interests

69. To set the structure and remit of the governing

body and any committees including governor

appointment details, term of office and

attendance record

70. To publish the structure and remit of the

governing body and any committees including

governor appointment details, term of office

and attendance record

71. To submit governor information to the DfE

database of governors via Edubase

72. To approve and set up a governors expenses

scheme

73. To consider whether or not to exercise

delegation of functions to individuals or

committees

74. To regulate the GB procedures (where not set

out in law)

75. To agree governor induction and training

programme

76. To review progress against strategic plan and

evaluate governing body performance

Formal

Collaboration

77. To consider forming or joining a group of

schools

Academies

78. To consider approach and time scale to

academy conversion

79. To consider forming or joining an existing Multi-

academy-trust (MAT)



Area

Function


responsibility is


Federations

80. To consider forming a federation or joining an

existing federation

81. Review of structure including any subsequent

conversion to MAT status

Inclusion and

equality

82. To establish and approve a special educational

needs (SEN) policy

83. To publish and update at least annually a SEN

information report (meeting requirements set

out in the Special Educational Needs and

Disability Regulations 2014)

84. To designate a qualified teacher to be

responsible for co-ordinating SEN provision (the

SEN co-ordinator or SENCO)

85. To appoint a designated teacher for looked-

after children

86. To establish an accessibility plan and review it

every three years

Safeguarding

87. To have due regard to the need to prevent

people from being drawn into terrorism and to

oversee the incorporation of the necessary

procedures and practices outlined in the Prevent

duty into the child protection policy

88. To adopt and review annually a child protection

policy and relevant procedures



Notes

1. In some schools, particularly larger ones, it may be appropriate to delegate deciding pay discretions

to the headteacher. However, in this case it is a good idea for the governing body to quality assure

the decisions made, for example by spot checking a selection.

2. Regulation 18 of the School Governance (Roles, Procedures and Allowances) (England) Regulations

2013 permits the governing body to delegate any of its functions, subject to the restrictions listed in

Regulation 19. Academy conversion is not included on this list and the Academies Act 2010 explicitly

restricts the functions of the discontinuance of schools provisions in the Education and Inspections

Act 2006. Therefore legally the Regulations permit delegation of the decision to convert to an

academy. However, it would be bad practice for any decision affecting the future of the school to be

decided by anything other than the full governing body. Furthermore, it is unlikely that the

Department for Education would accept an application to convert which had not been signed off by

the full governing body.


http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2013/1624/regulation/18/made

http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2013/1624/regulation/19/made

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